B.C.’s shoreline retreats most costly
Province
With summer holidays just around the corner, Royal LePage had some bad news yesterday for British Columbians looking to buy recreational property.
The average price for a waterfront, land-access cottage in B.C. is the highest in Canada, an astounding $996,900 and well above the national average of $380,507, according to the 2006 Royal LePage Recreational Property Report.
That average price was followed by Alberta at $900,000, Quebec at $483,333 and Ontario waterfront cottages at $454,960. The cheapest waterfront cottages were in Newfoundland, with an average price of $85,000.
By comparison, the national average price of a standard, two-storey home is $340,956.
Canadian recreational-property prices continue to increase in most markets as demand remains strong and inventory remains scarce, said the report.
The annual report says tight market conditions are expected as current cottage owners plan to stay put and young professionals enter the market in “droves.”
A large percentage of people are willing to spend more on their recreational property than on their primary residence. “We’ve got many segments of the population all looking for very few available properties,” said Royal LePage Real Estate Services president and CEO Phil Soper.
“It’s predominantly a result of an increase in disposable income. Our economy across the country has done very well and continues to do well. Employment levels are very high. There’s also what economists call the ‘wealth effect,’ which is the perceived or paper wealth that people have gained from the rise in value of their principle property [home].”
© The Vancouver Province 2006
